44th Parl. 1st Sess.
February 17, 2022 10:00AM
- Feb/17/22 11:34:28 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, without question, today is a dark day for Canadian democracy.
In Quebec, the use of the War Measures Act in 1970 was an extremely traumatic experience. Some 500 people were arbitrarily arrested, people who were held for weeks without being told their rights. This brings back some truly painful memories.
Obviously in politics there is the law, the letter of the law, the punctuation of the law and the text of the law, but there is also the spirit of the law. People can say that the Emergencies Act is not the same as the War Measures Act, but it triggers memories of a trauma for Quebec.
I would like my leader to talk about the trauma Quebec experienced with the application of the War Measures Act in 1970.
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- Feb/17/22 2:04:37 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, February is Black History Month.
Longueuil's city council has broken down age-old barriers and now welcomes young people, women and people from diverse backgrounds.
Today I am proud to celebrate three extraordinary women recently elected to Longueuil's city council: Reine Bombo-Allara, the first Black woman to chair the city council; Affine Lwalalika, the first Black woman on the executive council; and Rolande Balma, who, at 23, is the youngest woman ever elected in Longueuil.
The fact that these three Black women are now decision-makers on Longueuil's city council represents huge progress and reflects modern-day Quebec. To young people of diverse backgrounds, their election signals that participation in politics—
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- Feb/17/22 7:24:45 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, something my colleague said did not sit right with me. At one point, she said people were tired of jurisdictional excuses. That seems strange to me because I get the sense that that is part of the reason why we are here tonight.
Vaccination rates in Canada and Quebec are among the highest in the world. People here have, more than most, followed public health measures. Despite that, we are one of the last countries to lift restrictions, and that is basically what the people outside are tired of. I understand them. I am tired of it too.
Maybe people are tired of talking about jurisdiction, but it matters to the provinces. Provincial premiers, including the Premier of Quebec, want the government to increase health transfers to strengthen our health care system. If the system had had adequate funding, the crisis might not have been quite so bad.
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- Feb/17/22 8:25:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will try to be quick. We in the Bloc Québécois are fiercely against, but for other reasons. We break out in hives every time the federal government sticks its nose in Quebec's business, in general.
I very much liked my colleague's speech and I understand his position. However, for the past two or three weeks, we have seen members of the Conservative Party take selfies and record videos with the protesters here in Ottawa and elsewhere. How many Conservative Parties are there in the House?
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- Feb/17/22 8:48:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague. He did a great job of explaining things. I could never have made a speech like that. He did a great job of explaining the difference between the Emergencies Act, which we are debating now, and the War Measures Act in 1970.
That said, emergency legislation, even if it does not apply in Quebec—which is still uncertain—is still retraumatizing for Quebeckers. It seems highly likely that it will apply in Quebec. I myself participated in movies about those days. There are plays and books about it. Once I was even a part of a performance about the trial of Michel Chartrand, “le procès des cinq”, which was after 1970.
People have not forgotten. That is pretty obvious right now. Our offices are getting calls from thousands of people telling us to vote against it. They could not care less about how it is written. What they care about is what it means, and that is what scares them.
Could my colleague comment on the trauma triggered by this bill?
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- Feb/17/22 9:24:25 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I believe that my colleague will agree with me that what is happening outside no longer has anything to do with vaccines, masks or health measures. It has moved way beyond that.
We are hearing that the movement was infiltrated by extreme right-wing groups. We are also starting to hear that the Emergencies Act is going to throw fuel on the fire, that it will result in further radicalization. The more protesters are told the police are going to move in, the more they will want to stay. Does my colleague agree with me?
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- Feb/17/22 9:39:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, this morning, when the Prime Minister invoked the Emergencies Act, he said something that was rather interesting. He said that invoking this law was not something to be done lightly, that it was not the first, second or even the third option, but the last resort.
We really wonder what three options the government considered before invoking the Emergencies Act that we are debating today.
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- Feb/17/22 10:25:05 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, everyone in Quebec is against this law.
All of the members of the Quebec National Assembly, the Premier of Quebec, Québec Solidaire, the Quebec Liberal Party, the Parti Québécois, the CAQ, everyone is—
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- Feb/17/22 10:25:56 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, my mother would have tanned his hide.
Every member of the National Assembly is against this act. It is a trauma trigger in Quebec because of what happened in 1970 with the War Measures Act. Even though this act is not the same as the one that was in place in 1970, people still associate it with something traumatic. Individuals were arbitrarily jailed, civil liberties were suspended, and it was a very difficult time.
A year ago, we moved a motion in the House calling on the Prime Minister to apologize for the 500 arbitrary imprisonments in October 1970. Does my colleague think the Prime Minister should have apologized for what happened in October 1970?
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- Feb/17/22 11:11:56 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to apologize to my colleague for the fact that I am going to ask him a rather easy question. It is late and we are running out of ideas.
If I understand politics, it is a question of leadership, especially in times of crisis like these. During a crisis, governments need to make major decisions that affect all citizens, and they have to convince people that these decisions are the right ones.
At this time, seven out of 10 provinces do not agree with the Prime Minister's decision to invoke the Emergencies Act.
I will throw my colleague a softball. Is this not about a lack of leadership on the part of the Prime Minister?
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- Feb/17/22 11:55:38 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague, and I have a simple question for him.
I wonder how my colleague feels, as a member from Quebec, about having to defend a law that is unanimously opposed by all MNAs in Quebec City.
His premier and probably his own MNA, or the two or three MNAs in his riding, oppose this legislation. They may have even emailed him to let him know they do not need this law because nothing is happening in Quebec.
This legislation is like using a cannon to kill a mosquito. How does my colleague feel? Surely he feels at odds with all—
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